Mashpee tribe firm over rights to casino in Southeastern Massachusetts

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Chairman Cedric Cromwell is continuing a media blitz in advance of an expected Massachusetts Gaming Commission vote, vowing Monday that the tribe will build a casino in Taunton.

Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Chairman Cedric Cromwell is continuing a media blitz in advance of an expected Massachusetts Gaming Commission vote, vowing Monday that the tribe will build a casino in Taunton.

“Threats to sue our Tribe, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Department of the Interior will not deter us from building a first class destination resort casino in Taunton,” Cromwell said in a statement. “We have known all along that different groups would sue to try and deprive us of our tribal rights, but it has become clear that our opponents are more concerned with their own self-interest than the good of Southeastern Massachusetts. All they are doing is lining the pockets of lawyers instead of working to fill the pockets of the good people of Southeastern Massachusetts who need work.”

Some Taunton casino opponents have previously pledged to file lawsuits if the federal government approves the tribe’s land application.

Cromwell’s latest declaration comes as the Gaming Commission is expected to vote Thursday on whether to end the tribe’s exclusivity on the southeastern Massachusetts casino market by allowing commercial entities to apply for a casino license.

The Mashpee are pursuing a tribal casino in Taunton through a federal approval process. Due to uncertainty over the tribe’s ability to qualify for federal land approval and concerns that the process could drag out indefinitely, the Gaming Commission began contemplating late last year whether to solicit bids for a commercial casino in southeastern Massachusetts.

At a meeting two weeks ago, a majority of gaming commissioners appeared ready to allow commercial entities to seek a commercial casino license in the region, but delayed a vote until April 18 in order to collect more public input.

The option under consideration would let commercial entities to enter the region while still allowing the tribe to pursue federal land approval.

In a message released Sunday on the Massachusetts Gaming Commission’s website, commission Chairman Stephen Crosby said the panel respects the rights of American Indian tribes, but was exploring all options to balance competing interests and create economic development.

“At the same time, the Commission would be shirking its fundamental responsibilities if it failed to look at alternatives, since the status of the Tribe’s application for land in trust, and its ability to proceed with its casino project, cannot be predicted with certainty,” Crosby said in the message. “As a result, we believe we must consider other steps that will protect the interests of the people of Southeastern Mass.”

Crosby’s message came the same weekend the tribe launched a tribal casino advertising campaign. Howard Cooper, an attorney representing the Mashpee, sent a letter to the Gaming Commission on Friday accusing the panel of a lack of transparency. Cooper also threatened legal action if the tribe’s rights are violated.

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“Should actions be taken by the Commission which unfairly and unlawfully impair the Tribe’s ability to provide for its citizens through economic development, the Tribe will make every effort to seek judicial relief and remedies,” Cooper said in the letter. “After 400 years of injustice and deprivation, the Tribe’s obligations to its citizens require no less.”